Virginia lawmaker: Protect transportation trust fund

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1/8/2003

A Virginia lawmaker
is planning to introduce a constitutional amendment to prevent the
use of the Transportation Trust Fund to make up for shortfalls in
the state's general fund, the Prince William Times reported.

State Sen. Jay
O'Brien (R-39th District), who represents a portion of suburban Washington,
DC, said he would introduce his bill partly because, at the same time
Gov. Mark Warner was urging Northern Virginians to support a sales-tax
hike to pay for transportation, the governor was also taking money
from the transportation fund for other uses, the newspaper reported.
O'Brien said the governor's policy "sent such a bad signal and
was a breach of faith."

"This would
be a constitutional amendment that would say the monies set aside
for transportation go to the trust fund and cannot be used for other
purposes," O'Brien said.